Apr 2, 2009

Los Angeles Filmforum and Cinefamily bring the Orphan Film Symposium to Los Angeles

Where: The Silent Movie Theatre, 611 N. Fairfax Ave., Los Angeles

When: Saturday, May 2 & Sunday, May 3, 2009

Los Angeles Filmforum, Cinefamily at the Silent Movie Theatre and NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts will present a retrospective of the Orphan Film Symposium to the historic Silent Movie Theatre on May 2 and 3.

The Orphan Film Symposium has had six incarnations since its start in 1999 at the University of South Carolina. Founder Dan Streible has since developed the symposium into a favorite of AMIA members, filmmakers, and historians. The event is now organized at and by NYU as a project of its Moving Image Archiving and Preservation program. The biennial draws sold out crowds from around the world (18 nations were represented at the 2008 symposium).

For the uninitiated, “orphan” works are those which are outside of the mainstream and often have no known origin or copyright, or were at one point considered “lost” and without a formal repository to preserve them. These include home movies, amateur and educational films, industrial and sponsored films, experimental films, and newsreels. Presenters at the symposium speak about restoration and research projects, their processes of discovery for these films and videos, followed by screenings of the works.

Undoubtedly, newcomers to the Orphans phenomenon are curious as to what stories and treasures the early incarnations of the symposium uncovered. For those curious parties, Los Angeles organizations LA Filmforum and Cinefamily worked with NYU and Dan Streible to coordinate a two-day retrospective event on May 2 and 3 at the historic Silent Movie Theatre at 611 N. Fairfax. The event will feature five shows, each with selected presentations and screenings from all six previous symposia. Orphans founder Dan Streible will be present along with an amazing lineup of presenters and films.

Admission is $13 per show. For $65, patrons will receive a pass to all five shows in the symposium, free soda and popcorn AND a dinner and wine reception on Saturday night between the first and second shows.

To view the full lineup of shows, presenters and films, visit the Orphans West page at www.lafilmforum.org/OrphansWest/Program/Program.html.

Show Lineup (visit the program page for full descriptions):

Saturday May 2, 6:00pmSelections from Orphans 1: Saving Orphan Films in the Digital Ageand Orphans 2: Documenting the 20th Century

Saturday May 2, 2009, 8:00 pmDinner and wine in the courtyard of the Silent Movie Theatre!** For symposium pass holders only **

About Los Angeles Filmforum: LA Filmforum was incorporated in 1975. Its mission is to promote a greater understanding of film as an art form and the filmmaker as an artist by providing a forum for independently produced, experimental films, which have little opportunity of reaching the general public through normal channels of commercial distribution. It showcases alternative media that aims to inspire, enlighten, and empower, as well as to entertain. By featuring the underrepresented voices and visions of truly independent filmmakers, Filmforum exposes audiences to the full range of artistic expression, cultural perspectives, and critical inquiry. For more information, visit our website at www.lafilmforum.org, or contact us at lafilmforum@yahoo.com.